On 11 November 1988 heavily armed men drove in trucks into the center of Segovia, opened fire and threw grenades indiscriminately, killing 43 people, including three children, and wounding over 50 others. The regular garrisons of the police and military (belonging to the Batallón Bomboná of the 16th Brigade) stood by while the killers moved freely through the town for over an hour. Their entry appeared to have been facilitated by the removal of military checkpoints normally stationed on the road into the town. The paramilitary force made its getaway in three vehicles in which they travelled from Segovia through the neighboring town of Remedios towards Puerto Berrío. No attempt was made by the security forces to detain the group. Local army spokesmen immediately attributed the killing to guerrilla groups, but after the army version was challenged by survivors the then Minister of the Interior, César Gaviria Trujillo, said a "right-wing paramilitary group" was responsible.